Key concepts

Before we delve into the main subject of this chapter, it’s beneficial to briefly review some related topics. First, almost all comparers, combiners, and splitters yield a function value. These values are then used as arguments for other M functions. Therefore, understanding concepts related to functions and their invocation is essential. Second, what do comparer functions and the enumeration Order.Type have in common?

Function invocation

To effectively use functions within our code, understanding the invoke expression is key. The invoke expression consists of a set of parentheses that can optionally contain a list of arguments. It triggers the execution of the function body, which either returns a value or produces an error. For a more in-depth understanding of functions, please refer to Chapter 9, Parameters and Custom Functions.

The most straightforward way to call a function is to use its full name. After the name, you include an invoke expression...